The Girdle of Melian

uite hectic in daily life lately, and I've fallen rather far behind in blog comments. I visit everyone, but hardly seem to have the extra few minutes to log in and leave a reply. So I thought I'd share a few interesting posts from recent days right here: Zan Marie has a lovely Thanksgiving post and a set of links to some helpful tips for authors Sara has a great idea for a Thanksgiving tradition and also shared the hilarious Pearls Before Swine cartoon about refreshing Amazon feeds... Pam 's got an adorable dog, great photos of Montreal's history, and a link to a new book about  Laura Bradbury 's adventures owning a vineyard and guest houses in France Lara 's got snuggly kitties, fun photos, a contest, and a gorgeous award from Al/Father Dragon Lynne 's got some great book quotes. My wishlist keeps growing! Susan has a new book coming! Tunnel Vision by Susan Adrian: "A teenage boy who has a power he calls tunneling -- he can sense whe...

early goals! A long long time ago, I came across a year-by-year wrap up of writing and other events written by an author some of you might recognise (she said cheekily). I was inspired to do the same and hinted that I might post it , but never did. So now, four years late, here is a brief wrap up by year of all my writing (some of the years and stories overlap a bit here and there). I originally meant to have school and travels and family and reading lists as well, but that'll have to wait. Also the list doesn't mention every writers' houseparty we've had to date. 2000: Some poetry. Some book and music reviews and essays in university newspapers. Probably some short stories. Nothing to sneeze at, unfortunately. 2001: Year-long travel column in Bizim Anadolu 2002: Started my YA novel An Arnavutkoy Spring , which takes place in Istanbul c. 1910 2003: Continuing work on the first draft of An Arnavutkoy Spring 2004: Year-long book review column in Bizim Ana...

uthor Kevin Brennan is visiting today! Write What You Everybody Knows A few months ago I read an item in the New York Times called "Should We Write What We Know?" by Ben Yagoda . It stuck in my head, not because of the too-cute anagrams for Write What You Know that Yagoda came up with ("Write What You Wonk", "Write What You Own", "'K?", and "We Throw a Wink T' You") but because of the superficial wisdom of the whole idea. This is probably the most quoted and least useable piece of writing advice you'll ever hear, yet there are very few writers, fiction writers anyway, who abide by it. (I'm not much of a fan of "Show Don't Tell" either, by the way, since you can pick up just about any respected novel and point out all the Tells. It's a matter of finesse. If you can finesse breaking a rule, then I say break it to your heart's content!) To me, Write What You Know is a restriction, a bou...

osting a day early because I've a special treat and I couldn't wait! Talli Roland is visiting today! Thank you, Deniz, for hosting me on your blog today! One of my all-time favourite places in London is the South Bank, where the London Eye, the National Theatre, and the Royal Festival Hall are all located. It's where Mr TR and I met, where we had our first kiss, and where we got married. But apart from those wonderful memories, it's a beautiful spot -- like the London you see in movies. Standing on a walkway by the Thames, you can gaze out across the city, taking in the dome of St Paul's, the Millennium Bridge, and the Tate Modern. Simply magical. Mr TR and I re-enacting the proposal.  Every Christmas we spend in London, a walk along the South Bank is part of the holiday ritual. London is quiet and peaceful; the air crisp and cool. When I decided to write a Christmas novella this year, I knew straightaway where I wanted to set it. Lucy, my main chara...